CES is awash with the far out and futuristic. Here are nine things that caught our eye

One of the primary draws of any tech show are the examples of future thinking made flesh and CES is no exception. As well as the expected boost for all things AI, many exhibitors at CES 2026 made a virtue of artificial intelligence’s gradual manifestation as a more physical presence, rather than just chatbots and virtual assistants.

Read on to discover nine items of tech news that could shape the home and workplace of tomorrow.

SwitchBot Smart Home 2.0 ensemble

In retrospect, the ‘internet of things’ was a bit of a damp squib. Undaunted, tech firms are pushing the next generation smart home, this time embedding lashings of AI and the promise of coherent, all-in-one ecosystems of gadgets and connectivity – provided you stick to the playbook promised by a singular brand.

SwitchBot is one such new player. At CES 2026, the company ushered in a suite of AI-powered devices ranging from robots to smart lamps. Garnering the most interest, as these things tend to do, is the onero H1 household robot. Two robotic arms on a stick, with a semblance of a head, the H1 rolls around your hopefully single-level living space and offers up assistance with ‘household chores that remain difficult to automate.’

What this means in practice remains to be seen, although the SwitchBot ecosystem is designed to work holistically, with each and every device in the range chipping in to assist, from the MindClip portable AI assistant to the Lock Vista Series of smart deadbolts, with their 3D facial recognition abilities. Still, the H1 will get the headlines as everyone loves a robot, in theory if not in practice.

The two SwitchBot devices that offer the most potential straight out of the box are the e-ink Weather Station tablet and the OBBOTO desk lamp. The latter contains 2,900 LEDs and can respond to all sorts of external stimuli, from music to motion, as well as display information like time and weather.

More information at Switch-Bot.com

Looki L1 AI Wearable

AI Wearables are becoming commonplace, but the one thing the majority have in common is that they require the user to activate them before they start working. Looki’s L1 is described as ‘the world's first proactive AI wearable’, with the slightly dubious premise of being able to ‘anticipate user needs instead of waiting for input.’ In practice, that sounds like the weirdly cartoonish device – worn around the neck – will generate gigabytes of data as it fulfils its quest to become your ‘second brain’.

Weighing in at 32g with a 12-hour battery, there might be some practical professional applications (it was demoed using a specially devised ‘Expo Mode’) but for the rest of us, the ideas of a portable stash of daily recordings is a little too Black Mirror and not enough blue sky.

More information at Looki.ai

OLLOBOT cyber pet

Another android making a stealthy bid for domesticity, the OLLOBOT is a cyber pet designed for companionship via clever simulacrum of emotional intelligence. Although the dustbin-sized device is armless, the OLLOBOT incorporates a learning AI that will gradually learn to recognise those around it, while any learnings and captured content can be transferred over to any next generation models.

Developed by Aarhus- and Beijing-based studio Swift Creatives for the Shenzhen electronics and camera specialists Minnray, OLLOBOT gets its personality through the carefully choreographed suite of movements and responses it displays. Swift Creatives set out to design a ‘robot that feels present in the home without demanding attention’.

There’s playful use of tactile, furry surfaces, both on the robot’s ‘head’ and its non-grabbing (but sensor-filled) flippers, allowing OLLOBOT to respond to touch. Familiar and non-threatening expressions are conveyed via the main display screen, the visual manifestation of what the company calls the robot’s ‘EmpathCore’, which can also be stretched out, ET-style to. A three-wheeled motion system allows the OLLOBOT to trundle around, hopefully becoming part of the family in the process.

More information at Minnraycam.com

PISEN iDock Qi2.2 AI Robot Charging Station

A gimmicky update on the standard desktop charger, PISEN’s iDock combines wireless charging with USB-C ports sufficient to charge a laptop, ambient lighting, a Bluetooth speaker and an onboard AI system that turns a docked phone into a personal ‘robot’. As a result, PISEN hopes the all-in-one device will double up as an AI assistant with the matching app supplying a quirky personality.

PISEN iDock Qi2.2 AI Robot Charging Station, available from PISEN.biz from this Spring

Lenovo Laptop Concepts

Lenovo used CES to show off this year’s crop of new innovations, from AI Glasses to Qira, a ‘Personal Ambient Intelligence System’ that will go with across devices. We were most intrigued by the showy ThinkPad Rollable XD Concept, which features a flexible display that wraps around the top of the laptop. At the click of a button, the main display extends upwards, increasing from 13.3” to a maximum of 16”.

When not fully extended the ‘flipped’ bit of the rollable screen can double up as a forward-facing display for meetings, etc. A bit of a stunt? Perhaps – the practical applications feel rather limited. Props to Lenovo for using a transparent mesh to highlight the screen’s internal pulleys and servos so you can see the mechanical transformation in action.

Also on display was the ThinkBook Plus Gen 7 Auto Twist, with its motorised hinge that can twizzle the screen for a better view and the Legion Pro Rollable Concept, a 16” gaming laptop that uses the same screen tech as the XD. This time the expansion is horizontal, not vertical, allowing the laptop to open up to a maximum screen size of 24”.

More information on Lenovo’s range of laptops at Lenovo.com

LG CLOiD Domestic Robot

LG Electronics has a massive market presence across every conceivable sector. In addition to the company’s W6 Wallpaper TV, the company also had its own AI-powered suite of domestic appliances on display. Its ‘AI in Action’ approach builds on LG’s idea of ‘Affectionate Intelligence’, first introduced in 2024, and will roll out into all sorts of appliances in the years to come, but the device that best embodies the approach is another domestic robot, the LG CLOiD.

LG describes the CLOiD as an ‘ambient care agent’. Taking the same form factor as the onero H1 – an articulated torso on a wheeled puck, the robot is part of LG’s vision of a zero-labour home (pause for hollow laughter from homemakers the world over). Each arm has a five-fingered, highly dextrous hand, allowing the CLOiD to theoretically pick up where humans leave off and do all sorts of manual labour.

Examples of how this home integration might work include the CLOiD working as a home security agent, a means of sensing temperature and air quality around a dwelling and the ability to unload the dishwasher or retrieve and fold the laundry. If robotic housekeepers are to be a thing of the future, we reckon the tech bro bachelor pads of Silicon Valley are where they’ll find their first footing.

More information at LG.com

Birdfy Feeder Vista

We can’t knock the thinking behind Birdfy’s two newest products, the Feeder Vista and Bath Pro. The company specialises in interactive bird feeders, devices that do the simple work of putting seed and other foods out for garden birds while giving their customers AI-driven bird identification, notification and imagery.

The Feeder Vista incorporates two cameras for a 6K ultra-HD panoramic view of your feasting feathered friends, automatically generating what Birdfy calls ‘cinematic’ highlight reels of the garden visitors. Seeds are stored in the base of the device and gradually pumped up into the feeding bowl. Birdfy also promise a degree of squirrel-proofing, thanks to a weight-sensor system that shuts up shop should a heavier creature be detected.

The company also revealed the upcoming Birdfy Bath Pro, ‘a sustainable and smart puddle for every bird’, bringing the company’s camera and identification tech to the traditional birdbath.

UK.Birdfy.com, @BIrdfy_by_Netvue

Roborock Saros Rover Prototype

During our tenure with the Roborock Saros S70 the one-armed robot vacuum proved itself to be more than a little uncanny. That sense of creeping unease will be amplified once the company’s newest robotic cleaner comes to market, perhaps later this year. The Saros Rover is a prototype for a walking robotic cleaner that can hoick itself up over obstacles and even climb stairs.

Proving that vacuum cleaner tech often leads the way when it comes to automated navigation around the home, this conceptual vision could soon be staggering around the house terrifying pets in an unceasing quest for autonomous dust busting.

Global.Roborock.com

Skwheel All-Terrain Electric Ski

Wheeled skies are by no means a new idea, but French start-up Skwheel has added another dimension to the tech through electrification. As a result, the company’s forthcoming Peak S model boasts all-terrain ability.

The off-road variant boasts speeds of up to 60km/h with a range of around 50km. If you aren’t after the ski du fond experience, the standard Peak offers urban micromobility with way more stability than the average electric scooter.

Preorders are open at Skwheel.com